All People Matter

(Blogger’s Note—With Election Day tomorrow, I’m rerunning this post from last week.)

Here is the Texas Liberal endorsement post for the 2010 general election.

(Above–The red is the City of Houston within Harris County, Texas. In the upper right is Harris County in Texas.)

Where possible, I am voting the straight Democratic ticket.

In the case of the office of the State Comptroller, I am voting for Green candidate Edward Lindsay. There is no Democrat in this race. If the Green gets 5% in this race, then Greens get automatic ballot access in Texas in 2012. I want the option of Green Candidates on the ballot. Texans merit a choice that will consistently advocate for social justice and fair play. Hopefully the Greens can grow into this role in cases where Democrats let voters down.

I’m not voting the Democratic ticket with a full measure of enthusiasm. I’ve lived in a city everyday of my 43 years. Democrats sometimes take advantage of the loyal support of urban voters and offer little in return. It is really little different from how Republicans take the majority of rural votes in our nation, yet at the same time offer few solutions to the many problems of rural America.

While I do believe that former Houston Mayor Bill White will be a much better Governor than the incumbent, I’m disappointed that he has not put forth a vision that includes all Texans. We live in what is many ways a poor state. Yet the poor frequently seem shunned by the modern Democratic Party. Continue reading →

The Lieutenant Governor is important in Texas. The Lt. Governor presides over the Texas State Senate. He or she can appoint standing committees and select who will serve on these committees. The Lt. Governor picks committee chairpersons and is the final arbiter of the rules of the Senate. Here is further explanation of the role of the Lt. Governor.

Why do I feel that Linda Chavez-Thompson is the best person for this job?

Here is why—

1. A daughter of immigrant sharecroppers, Ms. Chavez-Thompson has kept faith with working people. Ms. Chavez-Thompson has rooted her professional and political life in concern for others.

From the Chavez-Thompson campaign—

“Linda Chavez-Thompson’s.. story began when she was born in Lorenzo, Texas. At.. ten, she started working for thirty-cents an hour hoeing cotton… In ninth grade, she had to leave school and to go to work full time to support her family. She continued picking cotton in the fall months and cleaning homes…to earn enough money to buy clothes and food for her family…In December 1967, she was hired as a Secretary at the Constitution Laborer’s Union in Lubbock, Texas. Over the next forty years, Chavez-Thompson kept working.. on behalf of working people, fighting to bring fairness and opportunity to Texans… Her work with unions culminated in 1995, when she was elected Executive Vice-President of the National AFL-CIO, the first woman and the first person of color to hold that position. In January of 1997, Chavez-Thompson was elected to serve as Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee.”

2. Ms. Chavez-Thompson has pledged to push the expansion of children’s health insurance programs in Texas. This is very much needed in our state.

3. Ms. Chavez- Thompson will advocate for affordable college tuition and stronger training of teachers even as the Texas Legislature confronts the massive Rick Perry budget shortfall. She’ll be a strong advocate of the American Dream in these hard times.

Here is the Texas Liberal endorsement post for the 2010 general election.

(Above–The red is the City of Houston within Harris County, Texas. In the upper right is Harris County in Texas.)

Where possible, I am voting the straight Democratic ticket.

In the case of the office of the State Comptroller, I am voting for Green candidate Edward Lindsay. There is no Democrat in this race. If the Green gets 5% in this race, then Greens get automatic ballot access in Texas in 2012. I want the option of Green Candidates on the ballot. Texans merit a choice that will consistently advocate for social justice and fair play. Hopefully the Greens can grow into this role in cases where Democrats let voters down.

I’m not voting the Democratic ticket with a full measure of enthusiasm. I’ve lived in a city everyday of my 43 years. Democrats sometimes take advantage of the loyal support of urban voters and offer little in return. It is really little different from how Republicans take the majority of rural votes in our nation, yet at the same time offer few solutions to the many problems of rural America.

While I do believe that former Houston Mayor Bill White will be a much better Governor than the incumbent, I’m disappointed that he has not put forth a vision that includes all Texans. We live in what is many ways a poor state. Yet the poor frequently seem shunned by the modern Democratic Party.

However, it should also be noted that the Democratic nominee for Lt. Governor of Texas, Linda Chavez-Thompson, has offered a very inclusive view of who should share in the blessings of freedom and prosperity in our state.

In Harris County, Loren Jackson has done a great job modernizing and bringing new efficiencies to the office of Harris County District Clerk.

In Texas Congressional District 7, located in the Houston-area, there is a write-in Democratic candidate against the Republican incumbent. Her name is Lissa Squiers. The incumbent is not running unopposed.

I am not endorsing any Republicans. It is possible a case could be made for the reelection of Harris County Judge Executive Ed Emmett. Mr. Emmett is a reasonable voice who brings some moderation to the Republican Party in a way that likely benefits the County as a whole.

Top conservative blogger Dave Jennings at Big Jolly Politics, endorsed Democrat Jeff Weems to serve on the Texas Railroad Commission. Mr. Jennings did this despite the fact he is Tea Party mouthpiece.

I cannot in this political climate endorse a Republican. It is not enough that Mr. Emmett is not a kook. Silence in the face of extremism is very much a vice. The present day Republican/Tea Party talking points of drastically scaled back government and racial and ethnic intolerance simply have nothing of relevance to say to our growing and diverse county. Mr. Emmett needs to speak up against the rising menace of Tea Party extremism.

I urge all to vote in the upcoming election. Please vote for all the offices right down to the last judicial and county race.

Because all things are connected, here is four-in-one post that involves ideology, metaphor, advocacy and biography. Seemingly separate aspects of existence and of our lives are in fact all part of the same story. These connections are found in simple day-to-day observations about the world around us and are found in how we live our lives each day. The things we need to be creative and hopeful are all around us. With effort, these things are accessible to all of us.

Here are two pictures I’ve taken in Houston in recent weeks of some likely cross-party voting this November.

The first picture shows an intent to vote for Democrat Bill White for Governor and Republican incumbent David Dewhurst for Lt. Governor.

The best course would be to vote for Mr. White for Governor and Democratic nominee Linda Chavez-Thompson for Lt. Gov. Ms. Chavez-Thompson has a proven record of advocacy for working people in Texas.

Why would you support for Governor and Lt. governor two people of opposing political ideologies?

The second picture shows support for Houston Mayor Annise Parker, a Democrat who will next be on the ballot in 2011, and Republican Harris County Judge Ed Emmett. Judge Emmett is on the ballot for 2010.

Mr. Emmett is known as a County Judge here in Texas. Outside Texas and much of the south you might call him a County Commissioner.

Mr. Emmett’s web home calls him a”conservative pioneer.” Why would you support a person who identifies himself in this way while at the same time supporting a Democrat for Mayor?

In practice, Mayor Parker and Judge Emmett represent in Houston and Harris County an often centrist, business centered outlook that does appeal to some. (Though not me.) In fairness to Judge Emmett, he is not a nut. Yet at the same time, neither is he the right person to address the hard economic circumstances faced by so many in Harris County.

As for Mayor Parker, my view is that she willfully ignores issues of extreme poverty in Houston. She also ignores the need for greater Hispanic involvement in our political process in Houston.

Ms. Parker’s voter base is narrow and largely Anglo. She won in 2009 in a election that generated turnout of barely over 15%. While some of Ms. Parker’s supporters see themselves as progressives, economic issues are often not the chief concern of these voters.

There are many people in Houston who could use Mayor Parker’s bully pulpit and advocacy. This support has not so far been forthcoming.

When will liberals, progressives and Democrats ask more of Mayor Parker?

On a larger level, political parties provide a shorthand and a coherence that is useful to the wise voter and to the informed citizen. Politics is at core about beliefs and action rather than about personalities and playing it safe when people need help.

While there will be exceptions, the more practical and intellectually coherent approach to voting is to support a group of candidates who will work towards the same ends.

At the end of this post is the weekly round-up of the Texas Progressive Alliance. The TPA is a confederation of the best political bloggers in Texas. (Each week I run the TPA round-up and include facts about Texas politics or Texas history. Running the round-up this week with information about the Green Party in no way implies that my TPA fellow bloggers support or do not support Green Party ballot access or any Green Party candidates in Texas for 2010.)

With the round-up this week is information about efforts by the Green Party of Texas to get ballot access in Texas for the 2010 election. If successful, these efforts may lead to automatic ballot access for Texas Greens in 2012.

Greens are running a candidate for State Comptroller named Ed Lindsay. There is no Democrat in this race. If Mr. Lindsay can get on the ballot and then win 5% on Election Day, the Green Party would qualify for automatic Texas statewide ballot access in 2012. With no Democrat on the ballot, the 5% goal is very possible.

There are Greens running for other positions for the Texas Statewide ballot and in other races in Texas. A petition effort is underway to help get these folks on the ballot. This petition effort is detailed at the link to the Green Party of Texas.

The statewide races in Texas are important in 2010. Bill White for Governor and Linda Chavez-Thompson for Lieutenant Governor are the Democratic nominees who I strongly support. Given the difference between these two candidates and their Republican opponents, it is essential that they be elected for the economic and educational well-being of all Texans. Another big issue is how Texas will implement federal health care reforms. Will Texans get access to health insurance and have a chance to get well when they get sick, or will our state government fight health care reform all the way and allow people to die from lack of care in order to satisfy the Republican political base?

These things said, Texans deserve options at the ballot box. In addition to giving Texans a true choice in the race for State Comptroller, Greens are offering a candidate , Paul Cardwell, for the District 9 State Board of Education race where there is also no Democrat on the ballot.

Libertarians are on the ballot all over Texas. Libertarian ballot access gives Republicans an option when they do not like their own nominees, and it gives voice to constituencies in Texas that may not always find something to support with the two major parties. While Libertarians are a dismal selfish lot, they have the right to ballot access and to try to convince voters to accept their barbaric law-of-the-jungle views.

The Green petition can be signed by any person who did not vote in either the Democratic or Republican primaries last month. I voted in the Democratic primary and am not eligible to sign the Green petition. You must also be a registered voter to sign the petition. Here is a list of county Green Party contacts in Texas if you want to volunteer to circulate the petition.

The Greens are making the petition available online for you to print up and circulate. You can print it and have family members and friends sign. Here is an explanation of this process. Even the smallest number of signatures makes a difference.

Please consider the helping the Green Party get on the ballot in Texas in 2010. Green party ballot access will strengthen democracy in Texas by giving voters more options.

The Lieutenant Governor is important in Texas. The Lt. Governor presides over the Texas State Senate. He or she can appoint standing committees and select who will serve on these committees. The Lt. Governor picks committee chairpersons and is the final arbiter of the rules of the Senate. Here is further explanation of the role of the Lt. Governor.

Why do I feel that Linda Chavez-Thompson is the best person for this job?

Here is why—

1. A daughter of immigrant sharecroppers, Ms. Chavez-Thompson has kept faith with working people. Ms. Chavez-Thompson has rooted her professional and political life in concern for others.

From the Chavez-Thompson campaign—

“Linda Chavez-Thompson’s.. story began when she was born in Lorenzo, Texas. At.. ten, she started working for thirty-cents an hour hoeing cotton… In ninth grade, she had to leave school and to go to work full time to support her family. She continued picking cotton in the fall months and cleaning homes…to earn enough money to buy clothes and food for her family…In December 1967, she was hired as a Secretary at the Constitution Laborer’s Union in Lubbock, Texas. Over the next forty years, Chavez-Thompson kept working.. on behalf of working people, fighting to bring fairness and opportunity to Texans… Her work with unions culminated in 1995, when she was elected Executive Vice-President of the National AFL-CIO, the first woman and the first person of color to hold that position. In January of 1997, Chavez-Thompson was elected to serve as Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee.”

2. Ms. Chavez-Thompson has pledged to push the expansion of children’s health insurance programs in Texas. This is very much needed in our state.

3. As proven organizer, Ms. Chavez-Thompson will offer the Texas Democratic Party needed skills in rallying more Democratic voters to go to the polls this November and beyond 2010. There is no good reason that a majority-minority state with many large urban centers should be so strongly Republican.